In October, New York City 8th graders interested in attending specialized high schools will take a newly revised SHSAT. The biggest change to the new test appears to be the addition of literature and poetry reading comprehension passages. After replacing the test's logic section with a revising/editing section and reducing the multiple choice answers from 5 to 4 in 2017, these new changes represent yet another major evolution in the design of a once static test.

Because these are currently the only official tests that accurately reflect the new test design, we strongly encourage families to be strategic about when and how to incorporate these tests into study.

Whether your child is preparing with a parent, tutor, or independently, he or she should consider waiting to use these released 2019-2020 tests until relatively late in the game. Instead, have your child build content knowledge by studying previous years' handbooks (the math section, for example, is relatively unchanged) or using a book (we like the Tutorverse prepbook). These newly released tests are best used as full mock exams, preferably in a simulated testing environment. We offer regular mock testing at our classroom in Carroll Gardens. (Click here to learn more and sign up)

If you have questions about SHSAT strategy or would like to learn more about our approach to SHSAT prep, we'd love to hear from you. Give us a call at 3473247443 or shoot as an email.